Patient Priorities Should be Paramount when Measuring Quality in Cancer Care According to Panelists at NCCN Policy Summit - Seite 2

Many panelists wanted to see patient preferences play a much larger role in defining quality cancer care, and called for an increased emphasis on patient reported outcomes.

"Cancer persists as the second leading cause of death in our nation. With complicated and costly treatment options to consider, aligning quality measures allows providers and clinicians to put patients and their priorities at the center of care," said Shantanu Agrawal, MD, MPhil, President and CEO, National Quality Forum (NQF).

"We have to define exactly what we mean by outcomes and make sure to prioritize what is most important to patients, in a focused, aligned, and thoughtful way," said Tracy Wong, MBA, Director, Quality and Value, Seattle Cancer Care Alliance. "Focusing on value has helped to elevate the measures that are important to patients—such as avoiding hospitalization—and shined a spotlight on financial toxicity. As patient-reported outcome measurement becomes part of routine care in oncology, new ways to characterize quality will emerge, with the patients' voice at the center. Developing intuitive patient-facing tools should help with patient-level symptom reporting and group-level performance evaluation, without overburdening patients."

"We need a unified, national quality reporting program with defined standards for patient-centered cancer care," agreed Kashyap Patel, MD, Oncologist, Managing Partner, Carolina Blood and Cancer Care. "I would like to see supported incentives for providers that implement patient-centered care through voluntary shared savings programs."

Those with experience in implementing value-based models, such as the Oncology Care Model (OCM), shared insights into successes and opportunities for improvement. 

"The OCM is multi-faceted and complex, and practice transformation takes time, but it is valuable and worth the investment," said Diana Verrilli, MS, Senior Vice President of Strategy and Practice Solutions for McKesson and The US Oncology Network. "By participating in the OCM, community oncology practices are empowered to become leaders in this value-based world rather than be passive participants. There are 15 practices in The US Oncology Network participating in CMMI's OCM, and we've witnessed an improved patient experience for Medicare beneficiaries as well as an increase in pathways and guidelines adherence. The ultimate goal is providing high-quality and high-value care to cancer patients, and this is a step in the right direction."